Scituate’s Malone and Kentucky look to knock off Louisville

Junior guard Sam Malone of Scituate will be on the bench and in the huddle as his Kentucky Wildcats take on Louisville Friday in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.

Dick TrustFor The Patriot Ledger

It’ll be hard to surpass the drama and excitement of their last game, but the Wildcats of the University of Kentucky are ready for anything.

Kentucky is coming off its 78-76 victory over Wichita State on Sunday, spoiling the Shockers’ unbeaten basketball season and setting up a Sweet 16 matchup with defending NCAA Tournament champion Louisville at approximately 9:45 p.m. on Friday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis (TV: Channel 4).

Junior guard Sam Malone of Scituate will be on the bench and in the huddle as his Wildcats try to repeat the magic of knocking off another higher seed in their quest to reclaim the NCAA title they won in 2012 when Malone was a freshman.

If Friday’s game is anything close to what transpired against Midwest Regional top seed Wichita State (35-1), you’ll need to buckle up even if you’re watching from a couch in your living room.

“It was probably the most exciting college game I’ve ever seen, by far,” said Malone, a 2011 graduate of Scituate High School. “It was unbelievable the way Wichita was hitting their shots, but we came back from nine points down in the second half and matched their punches with our counterpunches.”

While many a bracket devotee considered Wichita State invincible and a lock for the national title, Kentucky proved that anyone could be eliminated. Louisville beware.

“Wichita was an unbelievable team and they were on a mission,” Malone said. “They were not going to go down easily. In the end, our guys trusted each other and played as a team. It was probably our best game of the season down the stretch. I think we’ve had better games overall, but we came together at the right time and were able to close it out.”

Malone said No. 8 seed Kentucky (26-10) gave the Shockers “a lot of easy buckets,” so “we know we can play better than that.”

The starting point guard when Scituate went to the state final in his sophomore year, Malone has played in only one Kentucky game this season. It was for a half-minute against LSU in the Southeastern Conference tournament on March 14 at the Georgia Dome. The Wildcats won that game, 85-67.

Malone, 22, is healthy now after two surgical procedures on each knee, the last occurring as a Kentucky freshman who, in civilian clothes, was on hand to celebrate the NCAA Championship.

“It was surreal,” Malone said. “I was injured halfway through the season, but winning it all was great. I have teammates who play in the NBA (Anthony Davis with New Orleans and Nerlens Noel with Philadelphia) and I know people in different fields around the country who played Kentucky basketball. It’s a special brotherhood.”

Malone said he’d like to play more minutes, but he doesn’t feel left out while waiting his turn.

“It’s difficult (sitting), but I feel just as much a part of the team as the other guys,” said the 5-11, 185-pounder. “I practice every day and help out as much as I can.”

Part of that help comes in the form of offering suggestions to the coaching staff. Malone, who considers coaching an option in his future, couldn’t ask for a better place than Kentucky to learn the craft. Kentucky has the most all-time wins and the highest winning percentage in college basketball history.

Kentucky starts five freshmen, led by forward and team-high scorer Julius Randle, who averages 15.1 points per game. Among the other starters are twins Aaron (14.1 points per game) and Andrew (11 ppg) Harrison, guards from Texas.

“You always want to be in the game, but we’re winning,” Malone said. “When you’re winning, everyone is happy.”

When Malone checked into the LSU game for Randle, his teammates cheered for him enthusiastically. He’ll be cheering his mates on against the Midwest Regional’s fourth seed, Louisville (31-5). The winner will move into the Elite Eight on Sunday against the Tennessee-Michigan survivor.

“One of the big keys is to limit our turnovers,” Malone said. “Louisville likes to get on the run and score a lot of points off turnovers. Handling their press will be another part of the game. The most important thing for us, though, is not turning the ball over.”

Kentucky beat Louisville in their one meeting this season, 73-66, Dec. 28. But that was then and this is now.

“They’re a lot better than they were then and we’re a lot better,” Malone said. “I know our guys are more confident than ever. It’s going to be a war.”

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